Land Stewardship Project (LSP) was founded in 1982 as a division of the National Catholic Rural Life Conference to promote environmentalist agricultural practices, healthy communities, and the end of industrial farming techniques. The organization provides training and assistance in organizing communities; advocates for federal farm policy changes; and promotes community-based food systems. LSP advocates for economic and racially equal outcomes and promotes voter activism to advance its agenda. ^{1 2}

Related Organizations

Land Stewardship Action Fund (LSAF) was founded by the Land Stewardship Project in 2018, which in turn launched Land Stewardship: Democracy in Action to “check-in” with people to ensure they are registered, plan to vote, and provide support for those voting by mail. The fund endorsed candidates for state office, launched an initiative to count every vote, and promoted the message that election results would be delayed in 2020. ^{3 4}

Land Stewardship Project fiscally sponsors Midwest Farmers of Color Collective, a group of Black, indigenous, and other farmers of color; Wisconsin Rural Coalition; and Grass Roots Organizing in Western Wisconsin, a group that advocates for economic, and environmental equal outcomes. ^{5 6}

Partners

Land Stewardship Project is a partner of the Minnesota state-level left-of-center coalition We Choose US along with 40 other organizations including UnidosUS (formerly La Raza); Planned Parenthood Minnesota; SEIU Minnesota; Move to Amend; CAIR Minnesota, a group that joined the violent demonstrations in Washington D.C. against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress; Asian American Organizing Project, a voter mobilization group; African Career, Education and Resources Inc. (ACER), an advocate of racially equal outcomes; Main Street Alliance, an organization of small business owners supporting left-of-center policies; and Muslim Coalition of Isaiah, a Minnesota group sponsored by ISAIAH and affiliated with the Gamaliel Foundation founded by left-wing Saul Alinsky. ^{7 8 9 10 11}

Initiatives

Community-Based Food Systems

Land Stweardship Project supports community-based food systems that localize food production, processing, distribution, and consumption that they hypothesize avoids the environmental and health costs associated with modern farming methods. ¹²

Climate Change

Land Stewardship Project operates a three-part class titled “Whole Farm Planning For Climate Change,” a series of classes that teaches their view on potential impacts from climate, evaluates risk management options, and builds a plan to fulfill climate-resilient strategies. ¹³

Health Care

Land Stewardship Project advocates the prioritization of health care over profits of health insurance corporations, medical suppliers and drug companies. ¹⁴

Federal Policy

Land Stewardship Project  played a role in passing the Federal Conservation Stewardship Program and the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program and seeks further policy changes that balance small farm interests with those of “land-damaging agricultural systems” of factory farming. ¹⁵

Farm Bill

Land Stewardship Project published a Farm Bill Platform in 2022 with an update in 2024 that calls for enforcement of antitrust laws against large farm operations, reducing subsidies to industrial cropping operations and stopping the funding of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, payment caps for crop insurance subsidies for large farms, the acceleration of loan turnaround time for land sales, and increased funding for farmer’s markets. ¹⁶

Justice and Stewardship

Land Stewardship Project seeks the dismantling of systems of supposed oppression and racial, economic, and social equal outcomes. ¹⁷

Activities

Land Stewardship Project provides a beginning farmer course that has trained more than 1,000 people and awarded $11,160 in scholarships with $8,100 going to individuals labeled as Black, indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC). ¹⁸

Land Stewardship Project leads a climate resiliency cohort that promotes model farming techniques that are climate friendly including a land access/land legacy program designed to connect retiring farmers with those who wish to farm but lack the land to do so. ¹⁹

People

Scott Elkins is Land Stewardship Project’s executive director and former national director of volunteer and leader engagement for the left-of-center Sierra Club. ²⁰

Beth Slocum is chair of the executive committee, the owner of Sheep Sorrel Farm, and a Teacher at Mounds Park Academy in St. Paul, Minnesota. ²¹

Finances

Land Stewardship Project received $198,334 from membership dues and $185,952 from sales and service revenue as part of its $3,820,174 total revenue in 2023, according to tax filings. ²²

From 2018 to 2022, LSP received $14,688,801 in gifts, grants, contributions and membership fees. ²³

1. “Our Mission.” Land Stewardship Project. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/our-mission/.
2. “Board of Directors.” Land Stewardship Project. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/board-of-directors/.
3. “Who We Are.” Land Stewardship Action. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipaction.org/who-we-are/.
4. “Who We Are.” Land Stewardship Action. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipaction.org/our-champion-candidates/.
5. “Midwest Farmers of Color Collective.” Midwest Farmers of Color Coalition. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://midwestfarmersofcolor.org/.
6. Vision 2024. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://astronomy2024.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Vision-2024.pdf.
7. “Partners.” We Choose Us. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://www.wechooseusmn.com/partners.
8. “Log into Facebook.” Facebook. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://www.facebook.com/CAIR.Minnesota/.
9. “Voter ED – Asian American Organizing Project (AAOP).” Asian American Organizing Project (AAOP) – Ignite Young Asian People Power, April 22, 2024. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://aaopmn.org/voter-ed-2/.
10. “About: African Career Education and Resources Inc.: Brooklyn Park.” ACER. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://www.acerinc.org/about.
11. “Muslims in Minnesota.” Omeka RSS. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/exhibits/show/history-muslims/muslims-mn/.
12. “Community-Based Food Systems.” Land Stewardship Project. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/community-food/.
13.  “Climate Resilience Trainings 2023-2024.” Land Stewardship Project. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/climate-resilience-23-24/.
14. “Healthcare.” Land Stewardship Project. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/healthcare/.
15. “Federal Policy.” Land Stewardship Project. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/federal-policy/.
16. 2023 farm Bill Platform. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://sustainableagriculture.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/2023-Farm-Bill-Platform.pdf.
17. “Justice & Stewardship.” Land Stewardship Project. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/social-justice-stewardship/.
18.  “Land Stewardship Project”. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2023. Part III, Line 4c.
19. “Land Stewardship Project”. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2023. Part III, section 4a, 4b, 4c.
20. “Land Stewardship Project Names New Executive Director.” Land Stewardship Project, June 22, 2023. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://landstewardshipproject.org/land-stewardship-project-chooses-new-executive-director/.
21. “Beth Slocum”. LinkedIn, Accessed July 30, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/beth-slocum-7b09a670/
22.  “Land Stewardship Project”. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2023.Part VIII Lines 2a, 2b.
23. “Land Stewardship Project”. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2023.Part II, Line 1.